Porsches for Road and Track

GT3 (any year works for us)

price range: $50,000-150,000

You know, some guys just like to start on top, and when it comes to the ultimate street/track car, we’d suggest putting a GT3 in your garage. Of course, the financials here make this unattainable for many, and as we mentioned earlier, if you can’t afford to crash it, you can’t afford to track it. In this case some of us couldn’t afford the tires to track a GT3, but for those who can, we know of no better way to attack a road course.

So let’s a assume you can afford such a car: We’d recommend the 996 GT3. As a well-respected friend of mine who drove one on track and told me, “If I owned this car. I could drive it for the rest of my life and never fully exploit the potential of the GT3.” And for mere mortals driving the occasional track day, nothing could be more accurate. These cars are also the most affordable; with prices in the low 50s, you can buy what is essentially a factory-produced race car that somehow manages to be a comfortable (by enthusiast standards) street car, too.

Of course, tracking a GT3 is as simple as loading up a tire gauge and heading to the track. Even with street tires the GT3 is considered track prepared, and while a well-driven GT3 will put you to the front of the pack, even a poorly driven GT3 can manage quick lap times. At most big track weekends you will generally encounter a group of GT3 owners, so you should have plenty of other drivers to compare notes with and compete against. Should you need even more performance and image, might we suggest the GT3 RS 4.0. This latest and ultimate rendition of the GT3 is possibly the ultimate street/track weapon, and the only thing faster than the lap times is the rate of drain on your wallet, but such is the price of owning one of the most high-spirited production cars to ever roll off an assembly line. All GT3s look best being towed to the track behind a Cayenne Turbo.